But what if I'm injured?

Recently I have experienced the agony of finally feeling as if I were on track with my workouts, feeling fit with more energy, and actually looking forward to waking up before work to get my sweat on, only to fall a couple steps off the track because of an injury. And the worst part about it is I don't know what I did wrong! I have unexplainable pain that doesn't hurt bad enough for me to feel justified in skipping my workouts, but yet I feel if I kept going it could get worse and affect me for life.

So what do I do? Do I wake up all amped up to go on my morning run and just skip it? Do I go through my day with pent up energy because I never got the chance to burn it off? Do I feel like a wuss because a little bit of pain is giving me the excuse to blow of the gym, multiple days in a row? The answer that I have come up with, is yes.

Yes, my body may feel more flabby for a week or more. Yes, I don't quite feel like myself if I don't work out. Yes, I feel as if I'm letting myself down if I don't get to that gym like I promised. But, my answer is still yes.

Injuries are like weeds in a beautiful, healthy garden and if you don't nip them in the bud, they can grow to strangle even the strongest roots. A little bit of pain could end up haunting you for years, when a couple of days of rest could have prevented the future frustration and pain. I've experimented a bit with my injuries, sometimes spraining an ankle and scolding my year younger self for walking on it too soon, and I've babied a little pain until it's gone away, no matter how much my health-addicted mind beat up my logical-thinking brain. The conclusion I've come to is it is always better to err on the side of caution and make sure an injury is not a big fat seed of poison ivy that will affect your otherwise healthy body for years to come.

Runners who experience knee pain but continue to run can run themselves right into surgery. Lifters who strain to push too much weight over their heads can give themselves a hernia! Any small pain could lead to greater, where a day or two of rest could be the exterminator. My advice: watch the foods that enter your mouth a little bit more carefully for a few days and elevate/ice your injured muscle every night for at least three days.

And besides, taking a break from your regularly scheduled programing doesn't mean you have to quit training completely! Cross train in a pool if impact was the culprit. Or skip the muscle group that hurts and use that time to really challenge yourself in a different type of workout, or class, or strategy. Or how about working on your flexibility? Passing on your regular workout could even bring you to a different level of your fitness that you never would have gotten to by sticking to your same old routine.

Bottom line: if your child complained of a cold on Monday, wouldn't you feel terrible sending them to school every day until it grew into the full blown flu by Friday? Treat your own body with the same care and kindness and it will grow into the beautiful, strong flower you want it to be.